Jeremy Mayne BFA, MFA

Lake Colours II

Jeremy Mayne explores the intricacies of peak formations and the glorious colour of our mountain lakes with their sunshine, glacial till and breathtaking iridescence within his own vocabulary of colour, collage and other media on paper.

The artist's focus is based on memories of trips to the Canadian Rockies and the peaks of the mountains along with the intense colours to be found - hidden like jewels - in the lakes there. The ever-changing hues of the lakes reflect the seasons and daily weather conditions and can vary from opaque-milky shades of turquoise to glassy greens, deep blues and grays.

Themes of Time and Connection guide my process. The work deals with reshaping context. By manipulating splinters of imagery and color I exploit the energy within each element resulting in a translation of meaning.

For over thirty years Jeremy Mayne has worked as an artist and art instructor. He is represented in private and public collections both nationally and internationally, including the Alberta Arts Foundation Public Collection, the City of Calgary Public Art Collection, and the Red Deer Civic Collection. During his studies at the Red Deer College, the University of Calgary and the Royal College of Art, Jeremy was awarded both The Princess Margaret Medal and the Governor General Michener Medal. He has been a member of the Alberta Society of Artists, (president from ‘02 -’04), and the City of Calgary Public Arts Board (‘04 -’08). His work is commissioned by private collectors and has been reproduced for three books, published by the University of Alberta Press, 4th Floor Press and North Light publishers. Throughout his career, Mayne has worked as an instructor, guiding students to discover their artistic potential.

With this stunning colour play of nature I combined visual aspects of brochures, souvenir photo booklets and paraphernalia of the National Parks from the 1950’s and 60’s. The bright offset litho colours of such purchased items together with the intense primaries of the rental boats and canoes that still glide silently over the surface of the lakes create rich memories for visitors to Canada’s mountain parks.

My take on your recent series is “of six summits in the Alberta/British Columbia Rocky Mountain Range, drawn accurately to portray their sublime beauty and the pristine quality of the remote peaks. Few people will directly experience the wild, pure air at the height of these mountains, yet millions depend upon the glaciers nestled in their crags and valleys. No human sounds disturb the peace in these ranges, except the occasional roar of jet engines or helicopters. Snow melts in the sun, disturbing rocks of dolomite and limestone that tumble like errant children, perhaps all the way to the rivers, far below. As the climate warms, the deep ice beneath the snow groans, exposed, vulnerable, losing its grip on the shelves of stone. Unseen human fingers are touching these peaks, in the sky above them and the depths beneath. In our search for and exploitation of resources, they too are affected, though they seem untouchable and strong, free to endure. (Lise Mayne, 2018)